Engineering
What can you do with an Electrical Engineering degree?
Quick answer
An Electrical Engineering degree commonly leads to roles such as graduate electrical engineer, design engineer (entry) and test engineer. Five years after graduating, Electrical Engineering graduates had median earnings of £44,600 (middle half: £33,300–£56,400), and 89.4% were in sustained work or further study (DfE LEO, 2023–24 tax year). The largest employer sector for Engineering graduates is professional, scientific and technical services (26.4% of those in work).
Electrical engineering covers circuits, power, and control. Accredited programmes can support later professional registration. Official figures appear when an extract is loaded.
- Median pay after 1 year
- £33,700
- Median pay after 5 years
- £44,600
- In work or study after 5 years
- 89.4%
- Earnings rank at 5 years
- 15 of 146 subjects
- Top employer sector
- Professional, scientific and technical services
- Graduates in latest cohort
- 2,110
On this page
What jobs can you get with an Electrical Engineering degree?
Graduates commonly start as graduate electrical engineer, design engineer (entry), test engineer or controls engineer (entry). Electrical Engineering also builds skills that employers outside the obvious routes ask for, so many graduates move into roles that do not name the subject at all.
Graduate electrical engineer
Supports design or site teams with drawings, calculations, and commissioning checklists.
Skills these adverts often ask for
- schematics
- protection notes
- test plans
Design engineer (entry)
Skills these adverts often ask for
- CAD electrical
- cable schedules
- reviews
Test engineer
Skills these adverts often ask for
- fixtures
- pass/fail logs
- root-cause notes
Controls engineer (entry)
Skills these adverts often ask for
- PLC basics
- I/O lists
- fault logs
Role examples and skills are CourseToJob editorial guidance, not a guarantee of a job. Pay for individual roles varies by employer and location; we do not attach a salary to a role unless an official source publishes one.
Where do Electrical Engineering graduates work?
Five years after graduating, the largest employer sectors for Engineering graduates in UK employment were professional, scientific and technical services (26.4%), manufacturing (24.3%) and information and communication (9.6%). One year after graduating, the most common sector was professional, scientific and technical services (28.7%).
| Industry sector | Share of graduates in work | Median earnings in that sector |
|---|---|---|
| Professional, scientific and technical services | 26.4% | £44,300 |
| Manufacturing | 24.3% | £45,800 |
| Information and communication | 9.6% | £48,300 |
| Construction | 5.8% | £48,700 |
| Wholesale and retail | 5.7% | £37,000 |
| Administrative and support services | 4.2% | £39,500 |
| Public administration and defence | 4.1% | £44,300 |
| Finance and insurance | 3.8% | £65,900 |
Most common specific industries
- Architectural and engineering activities and related technical consultancy — 15% of graduates in work, median £41,000
- Computer programming; consultancy and related activities — 6.7% of graduates in work, median £49,800
- Manufacture of air and spacecraft and related machinery — 4% of graduates in work, median £48,300
- Management consultancy activities — 3.4% of graduates in work, median £58,600
- Provision of services to the community as a whole — 2.9% of graduates in work, median £46,800
- Research and experimental development on natural sciences and engineering — 2.7% of graduates in work, median £47,200
How much do Electrical Engineering graduates earn?
Official dataElectrical Engineering graduates had median earnings of £33,700 one year after graduating and £44,600 five years after graduating in the 2023–24 tax year. The median across all first-degree graduates of GB higher education institutions was £33,700 at five years.
| Years after graduating | Median earnings | Middle half earned | In work or further study | All-subject median |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 year after graduatingGraduated 2021/2022 | £33,700DfE LEO, Tax year 2023-24 | £28,200–£41,700 | 89.6% | £26,400 |
| 3 years after graduatingGraduated 2019/2020 | £40,600DfE LEO, Tax year 2023-24 | £31,800–£50,500 | 90.4% | £30,000 |
| 5 years after graduatingGraduated 2017/2018 | £44,600DfE LEO, Tax year 2023-24 | £33,300–£56,400 | 89.4% | £33,700 |
| 10 years after graduatingGraduated 2012/2013 | £49,800DfE LEO, Tax year 2023-24 | £33,700–£68,100 | 85.1% | — |
How one-year earnings have changed
Which universities have the highest-earning Engineering graduates?
Among universities in our index with at least 50 Engineering graduates measured, University of Oxford had the highest median earnings five years after graduating (£73,600), followed by University of Cambridge (£64,400) and Imperial College London (£56,400).
| University | Median earnings | Graduates measured |
|---|---|---|
| University of Oxford | £73,600 | 95 |
| University of Cambridge | £64,400 | 230 |
| Imperial College London | £56,400 | 225 |
| University College London | £55,300 | 175 |
| Durham University | £54,000 | 130 |
| Open University | £52,300 | 335 |
| Wrexham University | £51,200 | 55 |
| University of Bath | £50,500 | 350 |
| University of Warwick | £50,100 | 240 |
| University of Bristol | £49,800 | 280 |
Is Electrical Engineering the right degree for you?
EditorialYou may enjoy it if
- You like circuits, signals, and making hardware behave.
- You are willing to learn both theory and workshop practice.
- You enjoy fault-finding with a method.
It may not suit you if
- You wanted a software-only computing course.
- You dislike mathematics and lab reports.
- You expected no health-and-safety rules around live equipment.
Interview questions for Electrical Engineering graduate roles
EditorialGraduate electrical, test and controls interviews usually test safe isolation, drawings, and a simple circuit explanation. These prompts are editorial illustrations.
Walk us through how you would isolate a circuit before testing.
What it tests. Safe isolation as a habit, not a slogan.
A drawing shows one cable size and the store has another. What next?
What it tests. You query; you do not substitute on a hunch.
Explain what a protection device is doing in a simple circuit.
What it tests. Physical understanding, not a catalogue number.
Test results are within spec but trending towards a limit. What do you report?
What it tests. You flag the trend; you do not wait for a fail.
How would you write a handover note for a panel you have just commissioned?
What it tests. What was done, what is outstanding, and what is live.
Most Electrical Engineering courses do not use a standard admissions interview. If a university invites you, it will say so — see UCAS on undergraduate interview invitations.
Illustrative question types for the roles above, not questions from a named employer.
Find Electrical Engineering graduate jobs
Searched by the entry-level roles aboveSearch UK vacancies connected to electrical engineering. These are role matches, not guaranteed graduate-level jobs: read the experience, qualifications and work-permission requirements in each full advert.
Salary filters and ordering use the provider’s data, which can include estimates. Cards below show employer-listed pay only. Cached searches can be up to 30 minutes old; the employer’s advert confirms availability.
Checking vacancies for Graduate electrical engineer…
Prepare your application with graduate cv examples, student cv examples, the free CV builder and the application tracker.
Is there an apprenticeship alternative to Electrical Engineering?
EditorialElectrical and electronic engineering apprenticeships are common in utilities and manufacturing. This note is editorial.
Research exact university programmes
We have not added verified programme records for this subject yet. Use the official university catalogue for current courses, fees and entry requirements.
Explore the programme finder · Compare programme details · Research international scholarships
Make your next move
Planning to study Electrical Engineering in the UK?
Check the exact programme, entry requirements and total cost before applying. International applicants should also confirm qualification equivalence, English-language evidence and visa requirements.
Find UK study guidance for your country · Compare international course-fee examples
Explore the international student guide · Build your study budget and checklist
Universities for Electrical Engineering in our index
123 universitiesAn editorial provision index, not a live UCAS catalogue: confirm current courses on UCAS. CourseToJob is not UCAS.Open Electrical Engineering in the full university explorer.
Show all 123 universities
Name, city, or a CourseToJob subject. Nothing is stored.
Nation
No university matches that search.
Undergraduate applications are made on UCAS, not here.
Electrical Engineering degree: frequently asked questions
What jobs can you do with an Electrical Engineering degree?
Common starting roles include graduate electrical engineer, design engineer (entry), test engineer and controls engineer (entry). Five years after graduating, the most common sectors for Engineering graduates in work were professional, scientific and technical services (26.4%), manufacturing (24.3%) and information and communication (9.6%). These are examples, not guaranteed jobs: your experience, location and further training matter.
How much do Electrical Engineering graduates earn in the UK?
DfE Longitudinal Education Outcomes data for the 2023–24 tax year shows median earnings for UK-domiciled Electrical Engineering graduates of £33,700 one year after graduating, £40,600 three years after graduating, £44,600 five years after graduating and £49,800 ten years after graduating. Each figure describes a different graduating cohort, not one person's pay rise, and it is gross pay for those in sustained employment, not a starting salary offer.
Is an Electrical Engineering degree worth it?
It depends on what you want to do. On the official data, 89.4% of Electrical Engineering graduates were in sustained employment or further study five years after graduating, with median earnings of £44,600. For comparison, the median across all first-degree graduates of GB higher education institutions was £33,700 at the same point. That places Electrical Engineering 15 of 146 subject groups by five-year median earnings. Earnings are only one factor: enjoyment of the subject, accreditation and the route into your target job matter too.
Which universities have the highest-earning Engineering graduates?
Among universities in our index with at least 50 graduates measured, the highest five-year median earnings for Engineering were at University of Oxford (£73,600), University of Cambridge (£64,400) and Imperial College London (£56,400). These figures reflect entry grades, subject mix and where graduates work, so they are not a measure of teaching quality.
Can international students study Electrical Engineering in the UK?
Yes, most UK universities accept international applicants, but entry requirements, recognised qualifications, English-language evidence and overseas tuition fees depend on the university and programme. Check the university course page and international admissions team, then check visa requirements on GOV.UK.
Skilled Worker visas
Sponsorship depends on the job's occupation code and the current Skilled Worker rules, not on a subject's median pay. A Skilled Worker decision uses the higher of the general threshold and the SOC going rate. Subject LEO medians are not sufficient. Read the Skilled Worker job rules on GOV.UK.